Where in the Bible is the Christian God Cruel and/or Incompetent...

[halbhh]

Trailblazer said: But what will happen to the 69% of people in the world who do not believe in Christ? Is it 'bad news' for them?

Apparently you are saying that everyone will have another chance to hear the gospel message after they die, but if they rejected it in this life, why would they accept it after they die? So that still does nit address the question I asked you above.

You are still saying that one has to believe in Jesus to be saved. Christians try to but cannot get around this without admitting that they believe that Jesus is not the Only Way. With all due respect, I think this exclusionary belief has no place in this new age and was never taught by Jesus.

I agree that doctrines are not a substitute for scripture, but there is still a problem and that problem is that scripture can be and is interpreted differently by different people. Doctrines do not solve that problem though.

Quite a few pieces here! It will take many pieces to talk about so many aspects.

As to whether one would get a 2nd chance to hear the gospel, meaning for those that would seem as if they must have heard it, it can't be so easy for us to guess I think. On the one hand if they clearly understood fully the complete gospel during mortal life and rejected it, that would usually be thought to be a conclusive choice, but....one could imagine situations where it isn't so clear, very easily. For example, if the person simply wasn't listening very well, then it become more likely in my guessing to think that would be a case of not having heard it. Much more common today possibly could be a situation of having a part of the gospel, or perhaps not clearly said or in a way that was understood, so as not to really have the full version or the heart of it clearly, and then it would seem to me to be the same as not having heard it at all.

As to the far more speculative question about what other ways one might be drawn to the one true God well in this mortal life, one is left guessing at times. But the one true God does definitely say to "love your neighbor" for instance, so if a person is drawn to God in a real way, that message should be there, or understood, or felt as a compelling sense of what is right to do, or to feel something is wrong when not done. That's just one way to try to guess whether a person is drawn to the one true God. Some Christians try to say that God will find a way, and if you allow also that Christ went to the dead that presumably had not heard any version of the gospel (such as the version in Isaiah) to proclaim the gospel, such as in 1rst Peter, then if you count that as a 'way' also, then it does seem reasonable to think God will find some way no matter what to give everyone a chance. I don't think men can block God. I don't have any way to guess at all the ways He might pull someone to Him. Christ is the "way, the truth, and the Life" in a way that comes across clearly if you read all He says: the way is to love one another, for example. Someone once said to me that they didn't believe this or that about Christ, and I thought in that moment to say: "Who is Jesus? Jesus is the One Who said: 'Love one another as I have loved you'". Surely in this way, it's quite clear that God's way is in Christ's words, and of course to knowingly reject Him is then to reject God's way, the way of love. But notice that many think they know something about Jesus, but don't even know what He said.... Of course, they don't know about Him if they don't know what He said.

 

[1213]

Moral responsability is commensurate with the power of a moral agent to affect the situation. If your god is weak, his moral responsability is inferior to a god who is strong. ...

To me that means moral God would not give freedom to people. Is that what you think?

 

[halbhh]

The god of the Old Testament is both in the flood story.

A popular misconception is to claim God just killed a bunch of average people -- say many or even most just about like you and me, or innocent even -- didn't even give them a chance.

The common bible (the source of this account) tells a very different story than that.

That even though these people "filled the earth with violence" and "every inclination of their hearts were only evil all of the time"....

That even in spite of this, according to the common bible, they are all simply transported into prison of a kind, in spirit (in the afterlife), where then Christ Himself came to proclaim to them the gospel, no less.

Concluding in the detail that they can live then according to God, no less! --
1 Peter 4:6 That is why the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged as men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

I read the Bible, Quran, Gita, Book of Mormon, Hadith etc.
...and on the Bible I did so more than a dozen times. I actually summarised it too.
Yet, when ever I speak to non Christians, inclusive of Atheists, they try to turn the Christian philosophy of a loving God, especially Jesus, on its head with an argument that ...

"If Jesus is one of the Trinity, then it was Him who comitted atrocities, genocide, murder etc."
Another argument is that Christians believe in a loving God, but turns this thinking of God around with the question...

Why would a loving God create people, just so that they should die, get cancer, suffer..." and so on.

I have been thinking of these accusations and can not agree that the "Christian God" is accountable for these heardships and pain. The Bible actually gives the answers, and I found that it is only a very superficial reasoning that is claimed by people who never read the Bible on these questions, to find an answer.

Perhaps someone would supply me with a simple example, to enable me to see what they are talking about. If it is true that God is this immoral being, I want to know about such evidence.

He punishes off spring for the "crimes" of ancestors.
He commands and engages in genocide.
He commands and engages in infanticide.
He wants homosexuals in a loving relationship killed.
He dooms anyone that wasn't brainwashed into his religion. So if by sheer geographic accident you are born in rural pakistan and raised to be muslim, you are doomed.
He thinks slavery is acceptable.
In exodus when pharao is asked to free israelites and pharao is considering to comply, he "hardens" pharao's heart to make him decide not to comply just so he can show off a bit more by making people suffer in additional plagues.
He kills Job's loved ones and destroys everything he has and values, basicly on a bet with satan (supposedly the "evil one") just to show of how much of a sycophant job is and how much he kisses his feet.
...

 

[Nimos]

But lets look from God's point of view.
1. God made everything perfect.
2. And God made man to be the occupant of the Earth, and to do well with what God created.
3. God gave Man free will, otherwise Man was nothing more than a pre programmed being worse than a lapdog trained to do what He wanted.

I think a lot of atheists have an issue with a lot of ways religious people use "words" when they talk about God, even if they might not think about it as being an issue, I think deep down most atheists will probably agree. And I want to make it clear, that this is not to be annoying or nitpick at what you write and hopefully it will make sense soon.

God is the ultimate entity, beyond time and space, the creator of everything. That is the picture I get in my head when someone talk about the biblical God.

If I told you, that I made the perfect apple pie and served you a piece and you tasted it and instantly chewed into a rock, clearly the apple pie might be damn good, but to call it perfect is incorrect. Our understanding of the word perfect in this case is completely different compared to when you say that "God created everything perfect", the reason for this is fairly straightforward and is due to us knowing our own limitations, we are both humans, mistakes happens, we know we might taste and therefore prefer different flavors and it can happen that a small rock gets into the apple pie, but we both understand that the word perfect in this example, simply mean that I have made a really good apple pie.

When God is said to create something perfect, it's not just really good, it's perfect and there is no rock in his pie.

So when God created man with free will, did he undo his former perfection or was his creation still perfect after the creation of man?

4. By having free will, Man had the choice to be a moral being..

According to the story, man did not choose to be moral beings, which must mean that either God's creation was not perfect or it was exactly as he wanted it?

I hope it makes it clear why the word perfect when talking about God is not the same as when you and me might be using it about something else. Because whether Satan or humans were the rock in God's apple pie means that it weren't perfect or at least exactly as God wanted it to be. Which obviously give some issues with the whole flooding and wanting to kill everything as he end up doing.

or to be a Godless being no more than a greedy, murdere, rapist, and thief. What would prevent any person not believing in a Creator who he will meet one day, to simply take what he wants? Nothing.

We atheists do occasionally find time for other things besides murdering, stealing and raping others... it's rare of course, but it does happen once in awhile, that we might just watch a movie, read a book or listen to some music

I will leave the rest of what you have written alone, because, again think that the above two questions need to be answered or clarified before it makes sense to really talking about the rest.

So will add them here:
1. So when God created man with free will, did he undo his former perfection or was his creation still perfect after the creation of man?
2. According to the story, man did not choose to be moral beings, which must mean that either God's creation was not perfect or it was exactly as he wanted it?

 

[epronovost]

To me that means moral God would not give freedom to people. Is that what you think?

No. Not that our freedom is unlimited in the first place.

 

[blü 2]

And why would God have done that?

Because that version of God was invented by Bronze and early Iron Age humans and so thought as they did.

To find out why, one would read more fully in the text.

The text is a text from the era I mentioned. It will say those things for the reason I've mentioned.

That's the normal way people expect to better understand the things in a book: by that more full reading.

I simply don't accept that the bible is a unitary work. Instead it's an anthology, and somewhat miscellaneous at that ─ folktales, folk histories, rules, songs and poetry, polemics, politics, wisdom ...

29 The Lord your God will cut off before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their land, 30 and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, “How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.” 31 You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.
Deuteronomy 12 NIV
Notice the word "even" -- They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.

That conveniently overlooks the use of human sacrifice to Yahweh throughout the bible, starting with Isaac (called off) and then Jephthah's daughter, then the 'sons of Saul' (all carried out) then Jonah (called off) then Jesus.

So I assume the shock-horror part of Deuteronomy is burning them to death, not putting them to death.

Israel is directly instructed also that if they break this commandment, and end up worshipping such idols and sacrificing their own children in fire to idols, a overwhelming destruction will happen to them also.

That is, if they vote Democrat ─ or support the wrong Republicans ─ Trump will abandon them.

Those are just the ordinary politics of religion played out with Bronze age morals.

 

[loverofhumanity]

The flooding of the world is pretty incompetent, given that God created all these things and "he saw it was good". Keeping in mind that God is all knowing, all good and omnipotence.

One would assume that he could create or at least thrive towards creating something that at least remotely reassemble what he perceive as being good, both before, during and in the future.

Genesis 6:5-8
5 - The LORD saw that human evil was growing more and more throughout the earth, with every inclination of people's thoughts becoming only evil on a continuous basis.
6 - Then the LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and he was deeply grieved about that.
7 - So the LORD said, "I will annihilate these human beings whom I've created from the earth, including people, animals, crawling things, and flying birds, because I'm grieving that I made them."
8 - The LORD was pleased with Noah, however.

God ought to already know this, so not really sure how he can regret anything or grieve. And rather than correcting his own mistake or do it right the first time, he decide that the best possible option is to kill everything. What exactly did the animals do?

Here God decries wickedness but praises goodness (Noah). It’s clear to me that with free will man will be inhumane at times. As to suffering, it all emanates from disobedience to the laws of God such as love and kindness to all. If you look at every atrocity you will find men behind it not God. It’s our choice to have wars and commit war crimes etc and is directly opposite of what the Holy Books teach.

If God did not love us He wouldn’t grieve for us, simple as that. But He has given us freedom of choice.

 

[Nimos]

Here God decries wickedness but praises goodness (Noah). It’s clear to me that with free will man will be inhumane at times. As to suffering, it all emanates from disobedience to the laws of God such as love and kindness to all. If you look at every atrocity you will find men behind it not God. It’s our choice to have wars and commit war crimes etc and is directly opposite of what the Holy Books teach.

If God did not love us He wouldn’t grieve for us, simple as that. But He has given us freedom of choice.

I understand the argument that you and others, using free will as explanation or excuse in favor of God use. And would probably buy it, if it weren't for certain things that tend to be ignored with this explanation.

God create everything according to Genesis and he think it is good, which include the creation of humans with their free will.

Given that God is all knowing, how can he create humans with free will, think that it is good, and then later regret it, because he knows that this free will is going to end up with him having to kill everyone except Noah, it's not like he woke up and said "What the hell is going on here, how did that happen!!?". Even though if one read Genesis up until this point, is exactly how God is behaving, as a non all knowing God.

There are lots of evidence that this is the case..:
- The fact that he can regret anything at all, it shouldn't be possible for one that knows everything.
- He doesn't know where Adam and Eve is in the garden as they are hiding from him.
- He doesn't know that Satan is going to trick Eve.
- He ask Cain where his brother is after he have killed him, which he ought to know. Especially if people, when they die go in front of God, one would assume that they would have run into each other as God was fond of Abel.

As the bible continues, God changes character and the claim that he is all knowing is slowly added. It is not the case in the beginning. However this claim of being all knowing is a contradiction with no solution or explanation, when people try to explain the start of Genesis, even when using free will as the excuse.

Because if God IS all knowing, and he believes his creation is good, then he must also know how it is going to end up and that it is also good. Otherwise, the bible would say something like "God created man and he saw that it was sort of bad, like really bad to be honest and that he would eventually have to kill them all, except one family. But still decided that it was good enough to not change anything.."
But it doesn't say that, so God must have thought that it was good or he weren't all knowing. Free will doesn't change anything, as long as one maintain that God is all knowing. It only becomes even worse and harder to explain, when we add the rest of the stuff people usually assign to him, like omnipotence and all good etc. I have hardly touched those in the above.

People jump over these things far to fast, to go straight to how humans do this and that and that God never wanted it or that we suck and so forth. God was the creator with unlimited power, he could have created anything he wanted, but he created it like this and he saw that it was good. That need to be explained before jumping to all the bad things that humans does.

And even after this, it doesn't explain why God thought that the animals should be killed as well, again what did they do? it clearly say that God didn't like humans for becoming more evil, nothing about the animals.

Just want to highlight, that the original question was about
Where in the Bible is the Christian God Cruel and/or Incompetent...

I made another thread here on RF, essentially about why it is wrong to hurt animals, like setting fire to a cat, just for doing it. And im pretty sure everyone agreed that it was not something that one ought to do, because it really cruel and in every way a horrible thing to do. Now God drowned all the animals, because he wanted to, yet people don't seem to think that it is an issue? I find that strange.

 

[Trailblazer]

I understand the argument that you and others, using free will as explanation or excuse in favor of God use. And would probably buy it, if it weren't for certain things that tend to be ignored with this explanation.

If the the anthropomorphisms and Goddidit stories in the Old Testament are ignored, as they should be, then maybe what God actually does might make sense to you.

God was the creator with unlimited power, he could have created anything he wanted, but he created it like this and he saw that it was good. That need to be explained before jumping to all the bad things that humans does.

And even after this, it doesn't explain why God thought that the animals should be killed as well, again what did they do? it clearly say that God didn't like humans for becoming more evil, nothing about the animals.

I agree that God owes us an explanation for these things but we are not going to get one.

 

[Kfox]

I read the Bible, Quran, Gita, Book of Mormon, Hadith etc.
...and on the Bible I did so more than a dozen times. I actually summarised it too.
Yet, when ever I speak to non Christians, inclusive of Atheists, they try to turn the Christian philosophy of a loving God, especially Jesus, on its head with an argument that ...

"If Jesus is one of the Trinity, then it was Him who comitted atrocities, genocide, murder etc."
Another argument is that Christians believe in a loving God, but turns this thinking of God around with the question...

Why would a loving God create people, just so that they should die, get cancer, suffer..." and so on.

I have been thinking of these accusations and can not agree that the "Christian God" is accountable for these heardships and pain. The Bible actually gives the answers, and I found that it is only a very superficial reasoning that is claimed by people who never read the Bible on these questions, to find an answer.

Perhaps someone would supply me with a simple example, to enable me to see what they are talking about. If it is true that God is this immoral being, I want to know about such evidence.

*The story of Adam and Eve
If I were to build a play pen for my 2 children with plenty of toys, then I put a loaded gun in the play pen amongst the toys but told my children not to play with the gun, would you consider me a responsible parent?
Supposed I had an enemy and I see this enemy approach my children with the gun and I do nothing; I then see my enemy cajole my children into playing with the gun, still I do nothing, at first my children refuse via my instructions but eventually this mature adult enemy of mine cajoles my naive children into playing Russian rullet with this gun and I do nothing but watch them die.
For me to take the attitude that they deserved to die because they disobeyed me I believe is atrocious! Yet that is the attitude I am supposed to take when Satan cajoled/tempted Adam and Eve into eating the fruit.

*Often God's behavior doesn't doesn't seem wise or make sense
The story of Job for example:
Satan approaches God with a challenge claiming he can turn Job against him if given the opportunity. Now Satan knows God knows everything, and he also knows God only tells the truth; so common sense tells you all God has to do is tell Satan that he is unable to turn Job against him even if he were given this opportunity and Satan will know that is the truth and the conversation would be over; right? But instead God accepts this challenge which results in the pain and suffering of an innocent man and the death of Job's children. Now I realize he was able to have more children but the damage was already done! Children are not like cattle, you don't fix it by having more children; I believe this was wrong and unjust.

*The slaughter of innocent children
It amazes me how people can protest abortion clinics because it kills unborn children then go home and read in the bible about the slaughter of innocent children with God's blessing and think nothing of it.

When Moses went to Egypt to free the "Children of Israel" The first problem I have with this is God chose to "harden Pharaoh's heart" basically taking away his free-will and making him more stubborn than he normally would have been. Now why would he do this? Abraham Lincoln asked
"have I not annihilated my enemies when I've made them my friends?"
Supposed God were to soften Pharaoh's heart and caused him to reject the false God's he worshipped and worship the God of Moses: The entire country of Egypt would have been introduced to this God and everything would have been on the positive tip! But instead, everything stayed on the negative and Moses and Pharaoh were sorta like 2 school kids playing "my daddy is tougher than your daddy" which resulted in the hardship of innocent Egyptians and the death of the Egyptians first born children.
Why would a God that can create the Universe and all that exist in 6 days need to kill innocent children to make a point? He could have put all the Egyptians in a deep sleep and have Moses lead the Children of Israel out into the desert while everyone else slept. If a typical guy like myself can come up with a better alternative, why can’t an all knowing, wise, benevolent, etc. God?

 

[SeekingAllTruth]

I read the Bible, Quran, Gita, Book of Mormon, Hadith etc.
...and on the Bible I did so more than a dozen times. I actually summarised it too.
Yet, when ever I speak to non Christians, inclusive of Atheists, they try to turn the Christian philosophy of a loving God, especially Jesus, on its head with an argument that ...

"If Jesus is one of the Trinity, then it was Him who comitted atrocities, genocide, murder etc."
Another argument is that Christians believe in a loving God, but turns this thinking of God around with the question...

Why would a loving God create people, just so that they should die, get cancer, suffer..." and so on.

I have been thinking of these accusations and can not agree that the "Christian God" is accountable for these heardships and pain. The Bible actually gives the answers, and I found that it is only a very superficial reasoning that is claimed by people who never read the Bible on these questions, to find an answer.

Perhaps someone would supply me with a simple example, to enable me to see what they are talking about. If it is true that God is this immoral being, I want to know about such evidence.

I think your best question is, "Why did God create human beings just to allow them to suffer the most cruel torment and suffering." Doesn't seem like there's any good excuse for it. The Bible says God wants us to love him but his behavior is anything but loving toward us. I know, I know...he gave his only begotten son to die on the cross for us bla bla. But God didn't have to do that. he could just forgive us like he tells us to forgive our neighbors. Is that too difficult for a God who supposedly is omnipotent? God, heal thyself.

 

[SeekingAllTruth]

He could have put all the Egyptians in a deep sleep and have Moses lead the Children of Israel out into the desert while everyone else slept. If a typical guy like myself can come up with a better alternative, why can’t an all knowing, wise, benevolent, etc. God?

Good question. God, are you listening?

 

[Koldo]

Why don't you think that any book can represent God any better? Do you believe that the Bible is the only holy book?
Do you think that a book written by men 3,500 years ago represents God or what God is doing in this age?

No. I believe in no holy books.

I don't believe Paul had the authority to speak for or about Jesus but that is not most of the NT.

How are you counting?
The NT consists of 27 books, 14 of which are claimed traditionally to have been written by Paul.

Why would you believe the OT over the NT? Why would it be more likely to represent God?

I don't believe in any of them. I see both as fabrications.

 

[Trailblazer]

But God didn't have to do that. he could just forgive us like he tells us to forgive our neighbors. Is that too difficult for a God who supposedly is omnipotent?

Forgive us for doing what? Seems to me that God is the one who needs to be forgiven, for creating a world that is a storehouse of suffering. Now, that cannot be our fault because we did not create this world.

“Such is this mortal abode: a storehouse of afflictions and suffering. It is ignorance that binds man to it, for no comfort can be secured by any soul in this world, from monarch down to the most humble commoner. If once this life should offer a man a sweet cup, a hundred bitter ones will follow; such is the condition of this world. The wise man, therefore, doth not attach himself to this mortal life and doth not depend upon it; at some moments, even, he eagerly wisheth for death that he may thereby be freed from these sorrows and afflictions.”

Selections From the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 200

 

[Trailblazer]

Good question. God, are you listening?

God hears everything we think and say, but that does not mean we are going to get an answer to our questions.

 

[Nimos]

If the the anthropomorphisms and Goddidit stories in the Old Testament are ignored, as they should be, then maybe what God actually does might make sense to you.

Some people argue that throwing out or ignoring the old testament would be good. I disagree with that

Because it's like handpicking things or wanting things to be a certain way, when they ain't. Said in another way, it is to manipulate the truth and by that I don't mean whether the old testament is correct or not. But rather like someone saying that the holocaust ought to be removed from the history books, because its too cruel and they rather not believe it happened.
That doesn't really fly with me, a person have all the rights to not believe in the old testament, but to argue that it should be "removed" or "hidden" away, because they can't justify or accept it, because they want God to be something else, that is unacceptable unless they can provide sufficient evidence for why the old testament is false or a more incorrect description of God, than what they believe.

So God wouldn't make any more sense, if you removed it. Neither would Jesus, if the OT weren't there and I don't really like his teachings either.

I agree that God owes us an explanation for these things but we are not going to get one.

I have to agree with you, and the most logical answer to why I think that is the case, is probably not to difficult to guess.

 

[Samael_Khan]

I really wish more Christians could understand that this is exactly what they are placing on a pedestal as literally "the greatest thing" in the universe.

Exactly, and without sufficient evidence no less.

And I will, and do challenge God. From the perspective of Christians, who tend to believe that "God is working through them" - I actively challenge their ideas at all times, and will continue to do so because I find their ideas to be some of the lowliest garbage that human kind has been able to muster. And so, there I am, day in and day out ready to challenge the workings of God through the humans who hail as Christian. So, yes, "we'll see how it goes." So far, it has been 100% fine. Judging by the emotional toil of most (if not all) of those around me, which I tend not to experience (not an exaggeration or hyperbole - I wish I could truly share this with you somehow, but it is one of those things you would just have to take my word on), I have only been able to imagine that the threats I receive from Christians (and some others) of negative consequences bound to befall my life for all the anti-religious vitriol I spew on a pretty consistent basis, are just the empty, ridiculous words of fools who have no idea what they are saying. And I will continue to believe so until such time as all this crap is DEMONSTRATED to be in comport with reality. Not a moment sooner.

The demonstration is what I focus on as well as comparing Christian's morality with the God of the Bibles rather than critiquing the God himself. So Christians say that they are peaceful and God is good. I would ask that if they were alive back in OT days would they be fine with killing people if God commanded? If not, why not? Most responses I get is that they are glad they aren't living in those times.

I also challenge their ideas based on what I have learnt about indoctrination but that is a complicated issue.

I think I do understand your point about emotional toil and not being affected. I had the same issue in my previous religion. All those around me joined because of emotional reasons and their emotional struggles whereas my life was fine, I was just in it because of what I was convinced of. But then I came to realize that I was low key depressed which is why I joined. These days I am happy and don't have that depression even and don't need religion to make me happy. Is that similar to your case?

 

[SeekingAllTruth]

God hears everything we think and say, but that does not mean we are going to get an answer to our questions.

Answer to our question???? I'd settle for a "Boo!" from God.

 

[SA Huguenot]

So committing genocide against his own creation because he was not omni enough to build a proper functioning model in the first place is ok with you??? That's fair fair enough

again, a very superficial statement with no real substance on the reasons why God did as He did.
God did not create bad people at all.
In fact God created evering good, and for instance, God created Adam and Eve to live forever, and yet to have the choice to decide if they wanted to love God and to follow His example, or to break His covenant with the first chance of seduction bu another created being who rebelled againt God himself.
Due to man deciding not to listen to God, but to break the one rule He gave them, they brought destruction on the whole of creation. They became mortal and their descendends eventually also rebelled against God, just like the atheist of today. These people demanded that there is no God to which they will answer, and learned that moral law is something you choose to adhere to, or to discard.
They realised that if they wanted anything, working for it was too difficuilt, but stealing and killing can also achieve the same goal, especially if you dont have to answer to anyone.
Now, the atheists' acounter argument follows the next route in saying, as you do, why did God not create humans and by his almighty will created them so SIN would not enter the World.
Simple.
Do you know the philosophical statement:
If you love something, set it free..
If it loves you, it will return,
if it doesnt, it would never be.

You want to prescribe to God on how He should have created you, but you dont even realise that with your free will, God gave you the opportunity to decide if you will return His love for you.

The full description is in the bible, of course you can cherry pick your way around them to suite your own version of faith,

Why this accusation of me cherry picking.
I am the one actually attempting to collect all the eggs in one basket, to check what the global story comprises of.
You are the one that superficially make claims on what God did to the "inocent ancient people" without even taking all the facts into consideration.

So please feel free to provide your excuses why, for example, god condones sex slavery by allowing his chosen consumers to pick and choose the vanquished women, take them home, **** them (sorry, take then as their wife) then kick them onto the street if they are not satisfied? I would be very interested to hear your excuses for such an horrendous atrocity.

Oh, and no time machine allowed.

I made a full study of the OT facts on Slavery, and I was amaised to see that the OT God never instituted slavery as did the Muslim and Portuguese did in the past.
The term "Slave" and the institution of Slave holders in Israel was nothin more than a method to save a family who turned poor from destruction.
However, this is a total topic for another thread on another day.
All I want you to consider for now is the following rules made by God.
If a family turned desolate, they can sell one of their members to another rich family to save themself.
This person will work for at most 6 years, and be allowed to be set free.
He must be paid in advance, which will be the money received by his family. Think about it...6 years of income at once.
You were not allowed to hurt this slave, for even if he looses a tooth, he will be set froo with out any compensation for his owner.
If he one day leaves his tem of employment, he must be compensated on the rule of his master's increased estate. Just think of the huge severance package he will get for his labour.
He will have all the civil rights as his fellow countrymen.
If a girl is sold to save her family, she will have all the civil liberties too.
She will not be used for a sex slave, and the laws of rape, and adultery applies to her master, just as to any other person.
If he intends to marry her, but somehow grows to dislike her, he will not be able to let her return. If he does set her free, the same severance pay applies.
furthermore, there were more legislation in Israel given by God to prevent any of these slaves to be sold to another nation.
And Israel were warned not to mistreat any stranger. this includes orher persons not Hebrews. For Israel was a stranger in Egypt, and they were made slaves.
and lastly, there was laws of capital punnishment for anyone who stole a human.
Therefore, take the above into consideration and come back to tell me the God of the OT was a slave monger.
Again, superficial accusations is nothing more than deception.
Greetings